The present invention relates to a system for handling pressurized fluids. The invention is particularly useful in hot water supply systems, and is therefore described below with respect to this application.
Hot-water supply systems conventionally include a storage tank of a pressurized construction capable of withstanding a very high pressure. This is because the pressure of the cold water supply line is used for outletting the hot water which is supplied whenever the hot water tap is opened. For example, if the pressure of the supply line is from 3-8 atmospheres, the storage tank must be constructed to withstand a pressure of up to about 12 atmospheres for safety purposes. Such pressurized tank constructions require special materials, seals, safety valves, and the like, which requirements make pressurized tanks extremely expensive to manufacture and to maintain.
An object of the present invention is to provide a system, for handling a pressurized fluid inletted into a container and to be outletted therefrom in a manner such as to avoid the the necessity of pressurizing the container, thereby enabling the container to be constructed and maintained at considerably less expense than the presently used pressurized container constructions. The invention is particularly suitable for use in hot water supply systems, in order to avoid the neccessity of making the hot water supply tank of a pressurized construction, but it will be appreciated that the invention could be used in many other applications involving pressurized fluids, for example in heat-exchangers, filters, and the like.